Swiss Lawyer Posts Bail With 19th-Century Painting

Edgar Paltzer, the Zurich-based attorney who pleaded guilty earlier this month to helping American clients evade taxes using Swiss bank accounts, has posted bail with a unusual bit of property: A 19th-century painting valued at roughly half a million dollars.

According to a court filing, Mr. Paltzer has posted bail using a painting he owns entitled “La Gardeuse de Chevres,” which has been valued by an appraiser at between $450,000 and $550,000.

The painting is to be held by Mr. Paltzer’s defense attorney, and turned over to the government “if requested,” according to the filing.

Mr. Paltzer has been allowed to return to Switzerland, and is scheduled for sentencing in February of next year.

Thomas Ostrander, Mr. Paltzer’s attorney, said there’s nothing terribly unusual about posting bail with an asset. “In this case the agreed security was this work of art,” Mr. Ostrander said, adding that the painting is currently in the possession of his law firm in New York. Mr. Paltzer did not respond to a request for comment.

Charles Francois Daubigny’s “La Gardeuse de Chevres” was completed in 1862, according to public records. The dark, moody work depicts an obscure figure slumped beneath the shade of a forest near a flowing stream.

Until he was indicted in April, Mr. Paltzer was a partner at high-profile Zurich law firm Niederer Kraft & Frey Ltd. According to the indictment, Mr. Paltzer helped American clients hide money in offshore accounts between 2000 and 2012. His prosecution comes as the U.S. and other countries continue to crack down on Swiss bank secrecy in order to dig up undeclared assets.

As part of his court proceeding, filings also note that Mr. Paltzer and his wife have consented to have five safe-deposit boxes held in Mr. Paltzer’s name at a UBS AG branch in Zurich sealed.

Mr. Paltzer faces up to five years in prison on a conspiracy charge, but is likely to receive a shorter sentence.